Improvement in bottle-stoppers



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Improvement in Bottle Stoppers.

Patented Nov 14, 187i.

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WENDELL WRIGHT, OF PHCENIOIA, NEW YORK.

IMPROVEMENT IN BOTTLE-STOPPERS.

Specification forming part of Letters Patent No. 120,923, dated November 14, 1871.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, WENDELL WRIGHT, of Phoenicia, in the county of Ulster and State of New York, have invented a new and useful Improvement in Bottle-Stoppers; and I do hereby declare that the following is a full, clear, and exact description thereof, which will enable others Skilled in the art to makeand use the same, reference being had to the accompanying drawing forming a part of this specification.

The object of this invention is to provide a stopper for bottles, jars, jugs, &c., which maybe inserted and withdrawn an indefinite number of times Without injury, which shall be homogeneous in its texture and uniform as regards its elasticity, and it consists in making the stopper of a block of wood, provided with a deep annular groove, by which the outer bearing surface of the stopper forms a ring, more or less elastic and flexible, according to its thickness and the nature of the wood, as will be hereinafter more fully described.

In the accompanying drawing, Figure 1 is a vertical section ofthe stopper inserted in the neck of a bottle. Figure 2 is a cross section of Fig. 1, taken on the line w 00.

Similar letters of reference indicate corresponding parts.

A is the stopper, which is turned in a lathe or made of the form of the neck of the bottle, jar, or other vessel, and slightly tapering, like ordinary corks. This improved stopper is preferably made of soft, elastic wood, as pine or poplar, but

not necessarily so, as any wood of ordinary tenacity may be used. The lower end and portion of the stopper may be saturated or covered with varnish or other substance to close the pores of the Wood and prevent the evaporation or escape of volatile or other liquids. B represents a deep annular groove, extending from the top" of the stopper to near the lower end, as seen in Fig. 1, in the direction of the grain of the Wood. C is the neck of the bottle. D is the surface-ring, which is more or less elastic and flexible, according to its thickness. The neck-opening of the ordinary bottle or jar is not often a perfect circle, but the ring D is so flexible that it conforms readily to the shape of the opening and makes a perfect fit, thereby tightly stopping the bottle. A hole is bored in the center of the stopper for the insertion of screw E for pulling the stopper.

These stoppers are very cheaply made, and may be used over and over again without the least injury, besides being superior as stoppers to the ordinary corks used for that purpose.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is

A stopper for bottles, jars, &c., with the groove B, extending from the top of the stopper in the direction of the grain of the wood, substantially as shown and described.

WENDELL WRIGHT.

Witnesses:

A. N. MALLERY, PETER D. VREELAND. 

